Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky condemned Iran’s drone and missile attack on Israel on Sunday saying his country needed help from allies to repel air threats like Israel did.
The world cannot wait for discussions to continue. Words do not stop drones or intercept missiles. Only tangible assistance does. The assistance we are anticipating… It is critical that the US Congress make the decisions necessary to strengthen America’s allies at this critical time.
Former Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Volodymyr Omelyan, was even blunter, sharply criticising former US President Donald Trump whose America First policy called into question US military spending.
I hope Iran’s attack on Israel sends a powerful message to Republicans, specifically Mr Trump: you can’t wait any longer and think that these are separate little regional conflicts happening somewhere in Europe, the Middle East or Asia.
Zelensky has occasionally compared Ukraine’s dire situation to that of Israel. In 2022, the Ukrainian leader claimed that he saw the country as a model for Ukraine’s future and said that Ukraine should become a “greater Israel.”
The president claimed he was referring to Israel’s enhanced internal security model, but critics might draw comparisons between the two countries’ strident nationalism and treatment of minorities. Kyiv launched attacks against its Russian-speaking eastern regions for more than a decade, often targeting civilians.
Israel has also been criticised for its increasingly nation-oriented trajectory in recent years. Israeli activist Richard Spencer publicly praised the country’s so-called “Jewish Nation State” law in 2018, calling it a model for his desired “white ethno-state.” Israeli human rights group B’Tselem has called Israel an “apartheid” and ethnic supremacist country.
Ukraine has become more coercive in recent months as US aid stalled amid political infighting. Last month, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba demanded the delivery of Patriots, referring to a US-developed surface-to-air missile system that Ukraine considered crucial to fighting Russia.
With all my due respect and gratitude to the United States of America, do you believe that the US Army does not have one spare Patriot battery that it can transfer to Ukraine?
Mike Johnson, speaker of the US House of Representatives, announced on Sunday that he would try to ensure aid was delivered to Israel this week in the wake of the Iranian attack. However, he did not specify whether the legislation would include aid to Ukraine and other allies.
